George Manias, owner of George's Shoeshine and Hatters shop in Peoria, works his way down a line of Peoria-area politicians during a promotion for the Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure. (DAVID ZALAZNIK/JOURNAL STAR FILE PHOTO)

In Peoria, there’s no snap as sweet as a rag cracked at the end of a shoe shine by George Manias.

It marks the sharp finale of another masterwork by the shine maestro, Manias — the CEO (and everything else) at George’s Shoeshine & Hatters.

In 1946, 15-year-old Manias grabbed a rag and started shining shoes — 20 cents per customer — inside a Downtown barbershop. Then as now, he dressed sharp, with a bow tie, to set him apart from the competition.

“I put everybody out of business,” he once said.

By 1951, he’d saved enough money to open a nine-chair parlor inside the Niagara Hotel. He has been at 101 SW Adams St. since 1989.

Manias has hosted a legion of political luminaries, including presidents Barack Obama, George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan and Gerald Ford.

He’s also the hardest working man in shoe business. In 2013, he had a heart attack, yet returned just 11 days later. By best estimate, he has shined well over 1 million shoes — and counting.

At the sound of that final crack, Manias will pause to glance over his handiwork. He’d ask, “How’s that?”